Great Train Robbery police praised 50 years on

TWO former police officers who worked in Kidlington and trained near Witney were commended for their work on catching Great Train Robbers.

The commendation ceremony at Eynsham Hall, formerly a police training centre, marked 50 years since one of Britain’s most famous heists, in which 15 London gang members stole £2.6m from a Royal Mail train in Ledburn, Buckinghamshire on August 8, 1963.

Keith Milner, 78, from Islip, and John Woolley, 75, from Buckinghamshire, worked on the case as a detective constable and a police constable respectively.

Mr Woolley was responsible for finding the robbers’ abandoned hideout at Leatherslade Farm in Buckinghamshire.

Among the items found at the farm five days after the crime was a game of Monopoly which had been played by the robbers using real £5 notes stolen from the train.

Mr Woolley, who later worked as a civilian manager at Kidlington in the 1980s and 1990s, said: “I just happened to be in the right place at the right time.

“I feel quite emotional about the commendation, but I’m even more delighted about the reunion with people I haven’t seen for 50 years.

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Comments (2)

I still can't believe that a great movie has not been made about "The Crime Of The Century" there are so many angles to this caper, and I am amazed that Hollywood has not picked up on the anniversary.

I still can't believe that a great movie has not been made about "The Crime Of The Century" there are so many angles to this caper, and I am amazed that Hollywood has not picked up on the anniversary.hotel inspector. O.C.C.

I still can't believe that a great movie has not been made about "The Crime Of The Century" there are so many angles to this caper, and I am amazed that Hollywood has not picked up on the anniversary.

Score: -151

snapperdownunder says...4:37am Sat 10 Aug 13

The Thames Valley Force wasn't formed until 1968 (as a result of the GTR) through the amalgamation of the Oxon, Berks and Bucks, Oxford City and Reading forces. The Oxfordshire Police HQ at the time of the robbery was on the corner of Tidmarsh Lane in what is today the Oxford Register Office. Names recalled in this household are Superintendent Robert Smith, Inspector Sherwood, Chief Const ? Smith, Constables Lewis, Stone, Cowan, Ray Parslow, Charlie Pitson, ? Richardson etc. A member of my family worked (as a civilian) in the control room at the time. "Great memories" she says.

The Thames Valley Force wasn't formed until 1968 (as a result of the GTR) through the amalgamation of the Oxon, Berks and Bucks, Oxford City and Reading forces. The Oxfordshire Police HQ at the time of the robbery was on the corner of Tidmarsh Lane in what is today the Oxford Register Office. Names recalled in this household are Superintendent Robert Smith, Inspector Sherwood, Chief Const ? Smith, Constables Lewis, Stone, Cowan, Ray Parslow, Charlie Pitson, ? Richardson etc. A member of my family worked (as a civilian) in the control room at the time. "Great memories" she says.snapperdownunder

The Thames Valley Force wasn't formed until 1968 (as a result of the GTR) through the amalgamation of the Oxon, Berks and Bucks, Oxford City and Reading forces. The Oxfordshire Police HQ at the time of the robbery was on the corner of Tidmarsh Lane in what is today the Oxford Register Office. Names recalled in this household are Superintendent Robert Smith, Inspector Sherwood, Chief Const ? Smith, Constables Lewis, Stone, Cowan, Ray Parslow, Charlie Pitson, ? Richardson etc. A member of my family worked (as a civilian) in the control room at the time. "Great memories" she says.

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